MOM: The Killer (A True Crime Short)

Mark Gado

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In Brief

One by one, each of her nine babies died a quiet and mysterious death while everyone around her, friends, family, doctors and police seemed powerless to stop it. This stunning tale of denial and neglect exposes one of the most bizarre cases in the history of American justice.

Overview

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Praise

Press Kit

Overview

Over a period of fourteen years all of her children, one was just nineteen days old, died suddenly while in her exclusive care. One by one, each baby died a quiet and mysterious death while everyone around her, friends, family, neighbors, doctors and police seemed powerless to stop it. She showed up at the funerals, the image of a broken-hearted, caring mother who seemed overwhelmed by unexplainable events. But some believed she had systematically murdered her nine children and then tried to convince others that it was some sort of genetic curse on her family. A stunning tale of denial, neglect, and murders unsolved. Mom: The Killer is one of the most bizarre and unique cases in the history of American justice.

Mark Gado was a detective with the City of New Rochelle Police Department in New York for the twenty-nine years and also a federal agent assigned to a D.E.A. Task Force from 1997 to 1999. During that assignment, he received the International Award of Honor in New Orleans, LA. Mark was named Investigator of the Year 2000 and received dozens of other awards and commendations during his long police career.

Mark Gado’s first book, titled Killer Priest: The Crimes, Trial, and Execution of Father Hans Schmid was published by Praeger in March, 2006. Killer Priest is the terrifying true story of the only Catholic priest in American history to be executed for murder. His second book, Death Row Women: Murder, Justice, and the New York Press, was published by Praeger in November, 2007.

As a writer for over twenty years, his award-winning work has appeared in numerous publications and websites, including truTV’s Crime Library.

From the best true crime authors in the business, many of whom have seen their books made into major motion pictures, comes Crimescape® — a new collection of compelling short nonfiction crime e-books from leading independent e-book publisher RosettaBooks. Taking readers into the dark heart of the criminal mind and the tense hunt to bring perpetrators to justice, Crimescape® authors stand apart from other true crime writers because they have personal experience in crime investigation, whether as police detectives, investigative reporters, forensics professionals or criminal psychologists. Riveting storytellers, Crimescape® short nonfiction writers give readers all the information they need to understand relevant clues and the interwoven influences in each criminal case.

Forward

Foreword by Marilyn Bardsley

Marybeth Tinning was a part-time nurse, a waitress and a school bus driver. She was also a mother from hell. Over a period of 14 years, all nine of her babies died mysteriously one by one while everyone around her — family, friends, neighbors, doctors and police — seemed powerless to stop it. This tragic parade of death ended in a sensational trial where she was finally convicted of the murder of her 2-year-old daughter, amid her protests of innocence. In 2011, during a parole hearing, Marybeth finally admitted she murdered some of her children and, because of that admission, she may be granted freedom once again.

Former Detective Mark Gado’s 29 years as with the City of New Rochelle Police Department in New York and two years as a federal agent on a Drug Enforcement Administration task force gives him a perspective on murder that few other true crime writers have. During his D.E.A assignment, he received the International Award of Honor in New Orleans, Louisiana. Gado was also named Investigator of the Year 2000 and received dozens of other awards and commendations during his long police career.

As a police department veteran, he knows how to get research material that would elude other writers and is comfortable approaching fellow officers, prosecutors, and judges for interviews. Like his colleagues, Gado had lived with the gut-wrenching frustration of trying to build a case against a heinous criminal when other key elements of the community are not cooperating. Unique law enforcement expertise is not the only thing that Gado brings to the table. He is an excellent storyteller, bringing together in the narrative the points of view of the victims’ family and community, as well as those in the criminal justice system.

Gado’s first book, Killer Priest: The Crimes, Trial, and Execution of Father Hans Schmid, was published by Praeger in March, 2006. Killer Priest is the true story of the only Catholic priest in American history to be executed for murder. His second book, Death Row Women: Murder, Justice, and the New York Press, was published by Praeger in November, 2007.

As a writer for more than 20 years, his work has appeared on numerous websites and in many publications, including Time Warner’s truTV Crime Library, Law Enforcement Journal, Cobblestone, Vietnam Express, Strange Days magazine, Correction History, Rochester Magazine, and Famous American Crimes and Trials Encyclopedia (2004). His story about serial killer Carl Panzram, “Carl Panzram, Monster of Minnesota” (2004), won a Page One award for one of the top three magazine articles of the year. He also appeared in a Swedish public television documentary on the 1964 Kitty Genovese murder case. Gado has a B.A. in Criminal Justice and an M. S. in Criminal Justice from Iona College.

Like many of his law-enforcement colleagues, Gado joined the rescue effort at Ground Zero immediately after September 11. He is also a U.S. Army combat veteran of Vietnam, 1967-1968.

Praise

For Killer Priest: The Crimes, Trial, and Execution of Father Hans Schmidt

“In Killer Priest, Mark Gado recounts the true story of a Catholic priest from Germany who, after what Gado believes were actually a string of killings, ends up an inmate on Sing Sing’s death row convicted of the murder of the rectory housekeeper he impregnated.”

– Journal News (Westchester)

“Father Hans Schmidt was convicted of the gruesome murder of Anna Aumuller in 1914, in a case that was widely covered in the New York papers of the time. In this book New York City police detective Gado reconstructs Schmidt’s early life, describes the events of the case, and considers lingering questions of whether Schmidt was responsible for other murders as well.”

– Reference & Research Book News

“As compelling as any popular work of crime fiction.”

– Internet Law Book Reviews

“Mark Gado, a former detective, has come out with an excellent book-length account of the trial based on the transcript and newspaper accounts: Killer Priest….It reads like a Gothic Gilded Age novel in the style of Alfred Hitchcock.”

– New York Law Journal Magazine

For Death Row Women: Murder, Justice, and the New York Press

“Using a small but rich data set to write about an obscure research topic, former New York police detective and federal DEA agent Gado provides insight into contemporary practices associated with punishment, media, and the way social institutions interact to justify capital punishment. He discusses in detail the stories of six women executed in New York’s Sing Sing prison. Media accounts from the era in which these women were accused, tried, and eventually executed lead readers to question the media’s true intent. Referring to headlines, selective facts, colorful nicknames, and wild exaggerations, Gado describes how these women, their crimes, and the state response were socially constructed. Media contributions offered in a competitive environment are contrasted with police reports, court transcripts, prison files, letters written by the condemned, photographs, and eyewitness accounts. Although Gado gives preference to this evidence, the media’s role cannot be discounted. He raises gender issues when contrasting stories about the demonization of these women with the routine coverage of condemned men. Without providing answers, Gado’s text highlights moral inconsistencies that many continue to confront when examining capital punishment. Highly recommended. General, undergraduate, and graduate collections.”

– Choice

“Mark Gado shows that the media’s obsession with women who murder has a long history. A New York police detective for twenty-five years and a DEA agent from 1999 to 2001, as well as the author of two other books, he writes about crime and the criminal justice system for truTV (previously Court TV) Crime Library….The book is an enjoyable read, and the chapters on the individual cases are particularly well constructed. Gado demonstrates that historical tales can be interesting when there is an abundance of detail.”

Press Release

“What makes for a good true-crime story? Interesting characters, an engrossing plot, situations that often teeter between life and death. But here’s the MacGuffin about true crime: What you’re reading actually happened. Sometimes truth really is more compelling than fiction. And that’s why you will enjoy reading Crimescape® true crime series.”—Paul Alexander, the #1 bestselling true crime Kindle Singles author of Murdered and Accused

One by one, each of her nine babies died a quiet and mysterious death while everyone around her, friends, family, neighbors, doctors and police, seemed powerless to stop it. A stunning tale of denial, neglect, and murders unsolved, MOM: The Killerby Mark Gado probes the mind of notorious child killer Marybeth Tinning and one of the most bizarre cases in the history of American justice.

From the best true crime authors in the business, many of whom have seen their books made into major motion pictures, comes Crimescape ®— a new collection of compelling short nonfiction crime e-books from leading independent e-book publisher RosettaBooks. Taking readers into the dark heart of the criminal mind and the tense hunt to bring perpetrators to justice, Crimescape® authors stand apart from other true crime writers because they have personal experience in crime investigation, whether as police detectives, investigative reporters, forensics professionals or criminal psychologists. Riveting storytellers, Crimescape® short nonfiction writers give readers all the information they need to understand relevant clues and the interwoven influences in each criminal case.

MOM: The Killer is one of the first six releases in the continuing Crimescape® series from RosettaBooks. For an author interview or a PDF review copy, please contact:

About Mark Gado

Former Detective Mark Gado’s 29 years as with the City of New Rochelle Police Department in New York and two years as a federal agent on a Drug Enforcement Administration task force gives him a perspective on murder that few other true crime writers have. During his D.E.A assignment, he received the International Award of Honor in New Orleans, Louisiana. Gado was also named Investigator of the Year 2000 and received dozens of other awards and commendations during his long police career.